Most of England and Wales see rents rise, with first in London for many months

4th July 2017

The average rent in London has increased month on month for the first time since November 2016 and seven regions in England have also seen rental values rise in the last 12 months.

Across England and Wales the average rent in April was £814, 1.3% higher than a month ago and 2.8% up year on year, according to the latest index from Your Move.

But Wales is leading the way with annual growth, recording an average rent of $599 a month in May 2017, some 7.1% higher than a year ago.

The East of England saw annual growth of 4.1% to £872 while in the South East rents were up by 2.6%, the North West up 2.5%, the East Midlands up 2.2% and Yorkshire and the Humber up 2%.

The rental market in London is showing signs of recovery with rents up 0.2% between April and May to an average of £1,276 but they are still 1.5% lower than in May 2016 when the typical property rent was £1,295 a month.

The average rent in London Zone 2 reached £1,618, almost £300 more than the average rent in Zone 3 at £1,361. The lowest rents in London were at £1,064 in boroughs that share the Zone 3 and 4 boundary, with further reaching Zones such as 6 reaching £1,253 in May.

Only one region saw rents fall faster than London year on year and that was the South West with a fall of 2.2% in the 12 months to May to £663.

On a monthly basis seven regions saw rents rise or hold steady and only Wales, the East of England and the North East saw rents drop between April and May, down 0.5%, 0.4% and 0.1% respectively.

This means the North East remains the cheapest place to rent a property in England and Wales at £544 per month.

The index report also shows that a recent decline in yields came to an end in May, with every region offering landlords the same return as a month ago with an average of 4.4%.

Northern areas continue to have the highest yields with the North East at 5.2% and the North West at 5%. At the other end of the scale, London continued to offer the smallest percentage return at 3.2%, followed by the South West at 3.3% and the South East at 3.4%.

However, all regions have seen a decline in yields in the past 12 months. In May 2016 the average England and Wales yield was 5% and in the East of England the average yield has fallen from 4.4% to 3.8%. Wales was the only area to see rental yields remain the same as a year ago at 4.8%.

‘The majority of England and Wales saw rents increase between Theresa May’s election announcement in April and this survey being conducted in May. Even London, which had seen rents fall in recent months, has returned to growth,’ said Valerie Bannister, lettings director at Your Move.

‘Prices in the capital grew on a monthly basis for the first time since November 2016. While landlords have seen yields squeezed in recent times, there are signs this could be stabilising. Returns this month were 4.4%, the same as in April,’ she added.